Sonny And Rdquo's Life As A Young Boy Analysis

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Lok Yi Vivian Cheung October 15th, 1009 ENGW100 Sonny’s Life as a Young Boy (edited) There is no doubt that every child likes to be entertained. A typical kid would considers watching a cartoon or going to a park as a pleasure. In Manchild in the Promised Land by Claude Brown, Sonny is a kid who seeks enjoyment, yet he has a different standard than other kids; he considers doing bad things as a pleasure. Sonny’s childhood in Harlem during the 1940s was greatly influenced by his “gang”. He began his life of crimes when he met Danny, Kid, and Butch. Sonny and his “gang” weren’t those kinds of boys who begged their mommies to buy them ice cream, or those who cried for their daddies when they…show more content…
Whenever his dad got a yellow card from school informing about his absence, Sonny got punished; his dad would beat him as hard as he could. Sonny hated his dad so much that he wanted to kill that “evil mean man”. But, before he could do such a thing, he preferred to “cat out”, to escape from his dad for a few days. He slept in every comfortable place that he could find in the city and stayed there as long as he wanted to or until he got sent to the Children’s Center. When it came to winter, Sonny usually decided to stay home or stay in school to be warm. Yet, he still couldn’t stay out of trouble. He liked talking back to teachers and getting sent to the principal. Sonny had been expelled from three schools in Harlem. Even worse, he was sent to Bellevue Hospital under a psychiatric observation. Sonny enjoyed it; he loved every trouble that he could be…show more content…
They had thought of every way that could stop him from his bad behavior, but nothing worked. His dad believed that violence worked the best. Every time when Sonny got into trouble, his dad beat him, and Sonny would make him a temporary promise to be a good boy. But his dad lost trust in him when Sonny never kept his promises. His dad ignored when he didn’t go home or when he was sent to the Children’s Center; he said it was good riddance. Although Sonny’ mom was very upset, she never failed to make the trip to pick Sonny up from the Children’s Center. She loved him and never had a thought of giving up on him. She tried to hide his clothing to keep him at home, or she threatened to send him away until he is twenty-one, but when these didn’t work, she would ask her favorite question, “Boy, why you so bad?”(P.21) Sonny’s life as a young boy was engaged in crime. He was effectively influenced by his “gang” and the game of hookey. Getting into trouble was a routine in his childhood and he enjoyed it. Sonny had no concerns of anything else but what he considered as

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